Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili Recipe

Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili is packed with flavor, with a touch of cinnamon and spice. Serve topped with chopped onion and finely shredded cheddar cheese in the traditional style. I first made Cincinnati chili about four years ago after hearing several people from Cincinnati rave about it. A friend gave me a can of Cincinnati chili so I could try it, and I used that as a sample to come up with a version that was pretty close to it, but with a lot less salt.

It took a number of tries before I got the recipe very close to true Cincinnati chili. There are a lot of different spices and ingredients that work together to create the unique flavor profile for Cincinnati chili.

Although I could figure out the basic ingredients, it wasn’t until a Cincinnati chili enthusiast friend who is also an incredible food scientist told me the secret ingredients. He said there was probably a touch of cloves and vanilla in the chili, so I revised my original recipe and came up with this more flavorful Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili.

This has become one of my family’s favorite recipes and my youngest son has requested it for his birthday dinner several times. Our family tradition has been that the birthday boy gets to choose whatever he wants for dinner. I remember making this Cincinnati chili with all the fixings for his 13th birthday several years ago. This chili freezes well, so don’t be afraid to make the whole recipe.

Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili Recipe

I use 3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, but if you want a milder chili, reduce it to 1/2 teaspoon.

Course Main Course

Prep Time15minutes

Cook Time8hours20minutes

Total Time8hours20minutes

Servings12people

Calories204kcal

Ingredients

3poundslean ground beefI used grass-fed

8cupswater

1large onionfinely chopped

6clovesgarlic minced

3teaspoonsground cinnamon

1 1/2teaspoonsground cumin

4tablespoonschili powder

2teaspoonsground black pepper

2teaspoonsground allspice

1/2-3/4teaspooncayenne pepper

3/4teaspoonground cloves

1/2teaspoonvanilla extract

3teaspoonsWorcestershire sauce

8.8ouncestomato pasteTwo 4.4ounce tubes

2tablespoonsapple cider vinegar

3bay leaves

1ounceunsweetened chocolate

2teaspoonssea salt

4cupswater

To Serve

cooked spaghetti

fine shredded Cheddar cheese

chopped onions

cooked red kidney beans

Instructions

Place ground beef and water in a large pot, breaking up pieces. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 20 minutes. Drain meat and place in food processor; pulse until meat is a fine consistency (do not overprocess). Transfer to a slow cooker; add remaining ingredients. Cook on low for 8 hours.

To serve

Spoon chili on top of cooked spaghetti and top with some shredded cheese, onion and kidney beans.

Thank you so much for this recipe! My family is from the North, but we all relocated down South. We’ve been trying to replicate Cincinnati Chili for years since you cannot find it anywhere, and this is the closest I’ve ever tasted. I tweaked a bit, (instead of pulsing the beef, I just broke it up so well with my hands, that it becomes the right consistency in the water while still raw), but the spices are spot on!! I will be making this regularly!

Made this tonight with all of the toppings and it was a big hit. We’d never had Cincinnati chili before and this recipe is so flavorful and interesting. Our kids really loved it. I was hoping to freeze some for another meal but there just isn’t enough left. 🙂

Hi Tom, I would not use dark chocolate chips as they usually have sugar in them. If you have unsweetened cocoa powder, you can substitute that for the unsweetened chocolate. One ounce of unsweetened chocolate is sometimes substituted with 3 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder.

Had tried this a while back. My daughters and I enjoyed it. Now it is Memorial weekend and we are planning on having some hot dogs on the grill. Girls asked me to make this to use as a hot dog sauce. So, will be trying that this weekend.